Autumn fruit jam recipes

Go foraging for fruit and get jamming with some autumn preserve and jam recipes. Make the most of all the blackberries, plums and damsons this month. Stew with a bit of sugar and serve cool with cream on late summer days when you want to be outdoors, or pass a rainy afternoon happily in the kitchen making jars of homemade jam or jelly.

Jam recipes

How about trying one of these jam recipes for rosewater plum compote, bramble jelly, damson jam, or plum and Earl Grey jam?

For more ideas on our September 'could-do' list, turn to page 17 of The Simple Things. Not got your copy? Buy or download now.

Food from afar: Pasteis de nata recipe

It's got sweet, flaky pastry, it's got custard - what's not to love about Portugal's Pasteis de nata?

There’s something divine about the transformation of eggs, cream and sugar into gently set custard. So it is fitting that the most revered of custard tarts has monastic origins.

Portugal’s pastéis de nata were created in a monastery in Belém. When the cloisters closed in 1820, its clergy sold their trusty tart recipe. The buyer founded a bakery dedicated to the pastel de Belém: a flaky pastry tart filled with egg-yolk custard and baked until its crust is patchily blackened. It soon became a national treasure, travelling wherever the Portuguese went, too. In Hong Kong, via the colony of Macau, they became a staple of the dim sum house.

The Portuguese originals are still made by hand in Belém, where people queue to eat them warm, dusted with cinnamon and sugar. Like the keepers of secret recipes everywhere, the guardians of the monks’ prized formula hint at a ‘mystery’ ingredient. Various cookbook versions suggest vanilla, cornflour, even lemon. But then they also recommend – oh, the sacrilege – shop-bought puff pastry...

London’s Lisboa Patisserie is the place to sample their melt-in-the-mouth authenticity, with shots of bracing Portuguese coffee. A word of warning to the frugal, however: one is never enough.

Want to make your own? Try this Pasteis de nata recipe from Leite's Culinaria.

For more, turn to page 32 of August's The Simple Things. Not got your copy? Buy or download now.

Recipe: Chocolate fridge cake

No need to bake in August with our indulgent chocolate fridge cake.

This cocoa-laden treat embodies indulgence, not least because you only need a fridge to make it. And it's the perfect way to celebrate National Afternoon Tea Week (11-17 August 2014).

Chocolate Fridge Cake

150g unsalted butter 100g golden syrup 200g dark chocolate, chopped 1 medium egg, lightly beaten 330g digestive biscuits (or similar) 60g walnuts 60g sultanas 100g glacé cherries 75g brazil nuts

1. Line a 23cm square tin or similar flat dish with baking parchment.

2. Melt the butter and golden syrup in a pan and bring to the boil. Add the chocolate, reduce heat to low and whisk until the chocolate has melted.

3. Gradually add the beaten egg and continue to stir with the whisk until the mixture has thickened a little and formed a shiny emulsion. The egg will cook in the heat of the mixture but don’t let it boil (it shouldn’t reach above 85C). Remove from the heat.

4. Break the biscuits into chunks (quarters are fine), put them in a bowl with the walnuts, sultanas and half the cherries. Pour the hot chocolate mix over the dry ingredients and mix gently. Decant into the prepared tin, leaving the runny chocolate on the side of the bowl for now. Press the mixture flat in the tin.

5. Put brazil nuts in the chocolatey bowl and, using a spatula, coat them in the leftover chocolate. Sprinkle in a loose pattern over the biscuit cake, then add the remaining cherries. Chill for 3 hours or until set.

Recipe taken from Konditor & Cook: Deservedly Legendary Baking by Gerhard Jenne (Ebury Press, £20)

Cake in the House - page 51 of August's The Simple Things. Buy or download now

Recipe: Three ways with cherries

Go cherry crazy! This year’s crop of British cherries looks like it is the longest and largest ever, mostly due to our mild winter. They’re around until September so find a ‘pick your own’ and use with gay abandon to add colour and sweetness to meals.

Here, we've picked three delicious recipes for a sweet treat this summer.

Cherry Compote

The original, simple way with cherries. We love what Rachel writes about her favourite fruit. Cherry Compote recipe by Rachel Eats.

Image above: Rachel Eats

Sour Cherry Milkshakes

These sound incredible. Although it may be a job to hunt down Montmorency or Morello cherries at a 'pick your own', we think it looks worth the effort. 

Sour Cherry Milkshakes recipe by Orangette.

Image above and at top of page: Orangette

Pluot Summer Salad

Not a fan of sweet desserts? Cherries make a surprising addition to a summer salad.

Pluot Summer Salad recipe by 101 Cookbooks.

Image above: 101 Cookbooks.

Find more seasonal recipe delights in August's The Simple Things (buy or download now).

Recipe: Berry coconut ice lollies

Berry coconut ice lollies are perfect for hot days. The good news? You’re only two steps away from this wholesome treat on a stick...

Berry coconut ice lollies

Makes 6

300g fresh blueberries 400ml coconut milk 150g live probiotic yoghurt 1 tbsp runny honey Juice of 1/4 lime

You will need:

Ice lolly moulds Ice lolly sticks

1. Place all the ingredients in a blender and whizz to a smooth purée. 2. Pour into ice lolly moulds, add the lolly sticks and freeze overnight.

Recipe featured in August's The Simple Things. Buy or download your copy now.

(Recipe from The Medicinal Chef: Healthy Every Day by Dale Pinnock, Quadrille, £18.99)

Recipe: Chilled prawns with garlic mayonnaise

The finest of finger foods, especially dipped in aioli, this recipe for chilled prawns with garlic mayonnaise makes the perfect summer lunch.

Recipe: Chilled prawns with garlic mayonnaise

Makes 20

20 large whole prawns

1 fresh egg yolk at room temperature

1 tsp Dijon mustard

100ml vegetable oil

1 tsp vinegar

1 large garlic clove, peeled and mashed

1 Rinse prawns and place half of them into a steamer over a pan of boiling water. Steam, covered, for 3–4 mins or until prawns turn pink and opaque and curl.

2 Prepare a large bowl filled with icy water. Remove prawns from heat and pour them into the icy water to stop cooking. Steam the second batch of prawns in the same way.

3 To make the garlic mayo: in a bowl mix together egg yolk and mustard. Measure oil into a jug. With an electric hand mixer, whisk egg yolk and, very slowly, pour a trickle of oil into the egg as you whisk. Whisk until all the oil is used and the mayonnaise firm.

4 Mix in vinegar and season with salt. Add garlic and stir. Serve with the iced prawns and a bowl for discarded prawn shells and heads.

For more summery seafood recipes, turn to page 24 of August's The Simple Things.

Not got August's The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

WIN £50 worth of Dragonfly tea (archived)

WIN £50 worth of Dragonfly tea We love a cuppa here at The Simple Things and so are pleased to tell you about a competition to win £50 worth of organic Dragonfly tea. Five winners will receive a mahogany tea chest filled with all 15 speciality teas (96 sachets in total). For your chance to win, click here 

Recipe: Garlic potato salad with lemon creme fraiche

Reinvent the picnic for the modern world with made-to-be-mobile dishes, such as this potato salad recipe. A garlicky mustard kick rescue potatoes from potential blandness.

Recipe: Garlic potato salad with lemon crème fraiche

Serves 6

1.5kg mixed potatoes, cubed

3 tbsp olive oil

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

175ml crème fraîche

1 tbsp maille mustard

2 garlic cloves, minced

to serve:


4 tbsp fresh chives, finely snipped

Fresh dill

Red onion pickle (for recipe, see page 29 of July’s The Simple Things for the perfect potato salad recipe accompaniment)

1. Preheat oven to 190c/fan 170c/ 350f. Toss the potato cubes in olive oil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Bake for 45 mins–1 hour or until golden and crisped. Set aside to cool.

2. In a large bowl, place the lemon juice and zest, crème fraîche, mustard and garlic. Whisk together, then toss with potatoes, making sure to coat everything well. Top with fresh chives, dill and onion pickle.

Turn to page 26 of July’s The Simple Things for more al fresco picnic recipes.

Not got July’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

Recipe: Sweetcorn with flower and herb butter

Corn on the cob and butter are the most natural of double acts. Flowers and herbs picked from your plot take this melting accompaniment to the next level in this sweetcorn recipe.

The sugars in sweetcorn start turning to starch the moment the cob is picked, meaning even minutes can make a difference to its taste. Get the barbecue up to heat before you pick, for the juiciest, sweetest corn you’ve ever sunk your teeth into.

Recipe: Sweetcorn with flower and herb butter

Serves 6

6 sweetcorn cobs

For the butter:

150g butter, at room temperature

Small bunch parsley, finely chopped

Petals of a few edible flowers: marigold, cornflower, chive

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1. Put the butter in a large bowl, add all the other ingredients. Season and mix well, pushing the petals into the butter with the back of a wooden spoon. Bring it all together into a rough round using the spoon.

2. To make the butter into a sliceable log, chill the pat until it is workable
but not too firm. Use a piece of wax paper to roll into a log shape. Wrap and refrigerate or freeze until needed.

3. Once the barbecue coals have turned grey, pick the cobs and place them, husks and all, onto the grill. Allow the outer leaves to blacken slightly, then turn. Once the whole thing is blackened, pull back the husk, slice of the butter and place it on the kernels. Let it melt slightly, then eat.

Turn to page 40 of July’s The Simple Things for more ideas for enjoying July’s allotment bounty.

Not got July’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

Food from afar: Granita recipe

Granita refers to the coarse, grainy texture of this sweet, frozen treat. Delve into the history of the flavoured ice and try your hand with a summery granita recipe.

Sicily may not have invented flavoured ices – that hour goes to China, Arabia or ancient Rome, depending on which food history you read – but the island has made granita its own, combining it with chopped nuts, mandarins, mulberries, even dark chocolate. At breakfast it’s spooned onto brioscia (Sicilian brioche), while later in the day it gets dressed up with a dollop of cream or biscotti for dipping.

Read more on page 38 of July's The Simple Things.

Fancy a go? Head over to Rachel Eats for a melon granita recipe from the Brit-born, Rome-dwelling blog writer.

Not got July’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

Recipe: Brazilian cake - Broa de Fuba

Tonight's the night! Let's celebrate the FIFA World Cup Final in a very British way. Tea and cake, anyone? Brazilian cake, of course! In a nod to the ubiquitous workshop of all things Brazilian, we’ve found a polenta sponge that’s a winner in our book.

Moreish, moist and not too sweet, this Brazilian take on polenta cake is a highly loveable sponge.

BROA DE FUBA (CORN BREAD) 250g butter, softened 230g caster sugar 4 large eggs, separated 150g polenta 190ml milk 150g self-raising flour Icing sugar, to serve

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/350F. Lightly grease a round 20cm springform cake tin and line with baking parchment. 2. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add half the polenta, then half the milk, beating after each addition to combine; repeat. Sift in the flour and mix to combine. 3. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Stir one large spoonful of the egg whites into the batter to loosen it. Using a metal spoon, gently fold in the remaining egg whites. 4. Spoon the batter into the lined tin, smoothing the top. Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the bread comes out clean. Leave the bread in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with icing sugar.

Recipe taken from This is Brazil by Fernanda de Paula and Shelley Hepworth (Hardie Grant, £16.99)

Want more Brazil? This month, Andy Martin shows us round his home town, the hip Brazilian city, Sao Paulo. Turn to page 60 of July’s The Simple Things for food, football and (very) late nights from the Brazilian metropolis.

Not got July’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

Recipe: Peppermint chocolate chip ice cream

Homemade and anything but lurid, this peppermint chocolate chip ice cream recipe is all grown up.

We thought that mint choc chip was a pleasingly synthetic treat we'd left behind in childhood. Then this recipe came along, offering cooling mint flecked with devillishly good chocolate in a wholesome creamy form. We're converted.

Don't be tempted to use milk chocolate over dark, say Bountiful authors Todd Porter and Diane Cu. "It doesn't work as well."

Peppermint Choc-Chip Ice Cream

Makes about 1 litre

360ml double cream 240ml milk 100g caster sugar Peppermint leaves from 15 stems 5 egg yolks 140g dark chocolate, finely chopped

You will need an ice cream maker

1. In a pan over medium heat, mix the cream, milk, sugar, a pinch of salt, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a simmer, stirring often. Add mint. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes.

2. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks. Sieve cooled cream and discard leaves. Slowly whisk into egg yolks. Return mixture to pan and stir on a medium heat. Cook until custard thickens to coat the back of a wooden spoon.

3. Pour custard through a sieve into a clean container. Place container in an ice bath, stirring occasionally until cool (about 20 minutes). Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

4. When ready to freeze, set a bowl over a pan of simmering water and melt the chocolate. Stir until smooth, then remove from the heat.

5. Freeze the custard according to the ice cream machine instructions. While it's churning, place storage container in freezer to chill.

6. In the last moments of churning, drizzle a fine stream of chocolate into the ice cream. If your ice cream machine makes this tricky, fold in chocolate manually straight after churning. Transfer into the chilled storage container and freeze.

Recipe from Bountiful by Todd Porter and Dian Cu. To order a copy for £18.99 with free P&P, call 01903 828503 and quote ref 50480.

How to be a mindful eater PLUS three simple tea infusion recipes

Yes, we love food, but it doesn't always get our full attention. Time to reconnect your mind with your mouth and become a mindful eater.

Many of us fall easily into patterns of mindless eating. We pick at food while working at our computers. We reach for the quickest - and usually the unhealthiest - snacks for a quick energy boost. We don't take proper lunch breaks. We are constantly distracted while we eat, by television, by work by our phones and computers. We have lost a lot of the enjoyment of eating and as a result we are guilty of just shovelling food into our bodies.

Turn to page 100 of July's The Simple Things to read Rebecca Frank's rediscovery of the joys and pleasure of conscious eating. And sit down with a cuppa, taking time to enjoy the fragrant flavours of one of these mindful infusions. Glass tumblers work really well, as you can fully appreciate not only the refreshing taste and aroma, but also the visual delights. You can sweeten any of the teas with a dash of honey.

Simple Mint Tea

2-3 sprigs of fresh mint Freshly boiled water

Place the mint sprigs into your favourite tea tumbler.

Pour over hot water.

Leave to steep for a few minutes and you will notice the water start to turn slightly green. Savour and enjoy.

Mindful tea notes: This simple, refreshing mint tea has long been used as a natural digestive aid. It works well if sipped slowly after a meal.

Rosemary Tea

2-3 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves Freshly boiled water

Add the fresh rosemary to your favourite tea tumbler.

Pour over hot water and leave to steep for a few minutes.

Enjoy immediately or strain mixture first depending on your preference.

Mindful tea notes: Rosemary is associated with memory and is a lovely tea when you need focus and concentration on your side.

Lemon, Ginger and Lemongrass Tea

1 inch ginger; peeled and sliced into long thin strips 1 organic, unwaxed lemon A few seeds from a cardamom pod 1 stalk lemongrass Freshly boiled water

Press down on the ginger slices and cardamom seeds with the back of a teaspoon to release the flavours and place them in your favourite tea tumbler.

Slice the top and bottom off the lemongrass stalk and then slice in half lengthways, remove the outer layer, and place sliced inner sections into your tumbler.

Pour over hot water and leave to steep for a few minutes.

Squeeze the juice from the lemon and add to the tumbler.

Stir well and enjoy.

Mindful tea notes: The combination of lemon and ginger is energising, while the extra cardamom adds spicy warmth to boost your metabolism.

Not got July's The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

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Pack the perfect picnic

No basket? No problem. Part of the picnic’s appeal is its ad hoc nature, so go with the flow and improvise with our top tips for perfect picnic accoutrements.

High summer. School’s out and the pavements are packed with hot office workers and gaggles of confused tourists. What you need to do is pack up the car, ditch the city and head for the hills: an afternoon spent amid fields and streams and under tree canopies and bright blue skies will restore your equilibrium. Lying on a picnic blanket with a glass of something cold in one hand, and a plateful of something delicious in the other, is a picture-perfect way to idle away the heady days of summer.

Take inspiration from Brideshead Revisited and feast on strawberries and champagne, or enjoy a boating picnic a la Rat and Mole in 'The Wind in the Willows':  The Mole begged to be allowed to unpack it all by himself. He took out all the mysterious packets one by one and arranged their contents, gasping 'Oh my! Oh my!' at each fresh surprise.'

It may be a little optimistic to believe we’ll be picnicking all summer long, but if rain does stop play, you can always eat your picnic on your knees in the car. There are certain British traditions that will never die.

No British summer would be complete without a picnic. Pack the perfect picnic with our top tips.

1. A wine crate makes a great container for packaging and transporting your picnic. Sturdy sides keep it upright in the car and, upturned, it’s the perfect little table.

2. Use mason jars to transport salads, chutneys, and desserts. As well as looking the part, they are easy to fill, pack and can even be used as crockery in times of need. Plus, you can re-seal and take home any leftovers – from fridge to field and back again.

3. A robust bread board or tray at the centre of your picnic rug makes for a mini table, meaning no more spilled drinks or squashed sandwiches.

4. Want to keep mess and waste to a minimum? Pack each picnicker their own meal in a cardboard food box, then hand them round when you reach your destination.

5. Ice packs are a picnic essential for keeping cool. Not got any? They are easy to make using just two simple supplies. Squeeze washing up liquid into a ziplock bag, place it flat and push out any bubbles, before sealing and placing into the freezer. Once frozen, use to keep your chilled picnic items nice and cool.

Prospect Park, Brooklyn

Heading to New York City this summer? Seek out Prospect Park in Brooklyn: a masterpiece of landscape architecture at the green heart of NYC's largest borough.

Photographer and stylist, Julia Gartland, decided to hold an informal, pot luck picnic in Prospect Park for July's The Simple Things.

And what a location it is. According to Adrian Benepe, "Olmsted and Vaux designed Central Park, learned from their mistakes, and then designed Prospect Park." Indeed, this 585-acre oasis is an ambitious feat of design, packed with attractions such as the Long Meadow, a 90-acre meadow; Prospect Park Zoo; The Boathouse; Brooklyn's only lake, covering 60 acres; and the Prospect Park Bandshell, which hosts free outdoor concerts in the summertime.

Over ten million visits each year prove the Prospect Park has something for everyone, locals and tourists, young and old, from skating to birding to pedal boating to picnicking on the Long Meadow on beautiful days. The Park also boasts a stunning variety of natural and geological features, such as Brooklyn’s only forest, rolling meadows and shaded hillsides.

Find out more about Prospect Park, and read an extract from Prospect Park: Olmsted & Vaux's Brooklyn Masterpiece by David P. Colley (cover pictured).

Turn to page 26 of July's The Simple Things for beautiful photographs and recipes to inspire your own portable feast - on sale 27 June 2014.

Recipe: Lemon verbena sherbet

In June's The Simple Things, Lia Leendertz picks early-season crops and herbs for that first taste of summer. Turn to page 44 for fresh and tasty home-grown recipes, including this one for lemon verbena sherbet.

If you don't have a dedicated space for growing veggies, you can still pack your food full of summer flavours by growing a few pots of herbs. If you haven't discovered lemon verbena, then make procuring a plant your new resolution. The leaves taste like sherbet and make the best herb tea.

Or try making lemon verbena sherbet: 'A couple of years ago I came across a recipe for making sherbet, and I have been strangely addicted to it ever since. Hand your children a little egg cup full of sherbet with a handful of strawberries to dip in - and they'll be delighted', says Lia Leendertz.

The fizziness comes from the tongue-tingling combination of citric acid and bicarbonate of soda: the moisture on your tongue sets of the reaction, releasing fizzing carbon dioxide.

Lemon verbena sherbet (makes about 70g)

You will need:

Pared peel of 4 lemons About 8 lemon verbena stems, hung up to dry for a few days 60g icing sugar 1/4 tsp citric acid (from chemists) 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1. Roast lemon peel on a baking tray in a low oven for 30 minutes until crispy.

2. Strip the leaves from the stems (they must also be crispy) and whizz peel and leaves together in a blender.

3. Sift sugar, citric acid and bicarb into a bowl and add the ground leaf and peel. Serve with sliced fruit.

Not got June’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

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Go on a cheese picnic

Which cheeses would a cheese expert choose to have in a cheese-centric hamper? We find out how to compile the perfect cheese picnic.

If you want to make a picnic special but don't have time to start baking quiches and prepping salads, keep it simple and focus on the best bits, the cheese. All you need is a modest selection, some hunks of good bread and/or simple biscuits, a bottle of something cold and, voila, a faff-free feast.

We asked Hero Hirsh from artisan cheese supplier, Paxton and Whifield, for her word on the curd.

Montgomery Cheddar

A full-flavoured, firm cheddar. Every picnic needs one. Drink with: English pale ale or pear juice.

Camembert de Normandie

A soft cheese that ripens nicely in warm weather. Drink with: dry cider or apple juice.

Aged Gouda

Best aged for around 24 months with a sweet, nutty flavour, this has a creamy texture but is firm enough not to melt en route. Drink with: dry cider or apple juice.

Chaource

Triple cream cheese, very creamy but with a refreshing acidity. Drink with: bubbles - champagne or sparkling elderflower, ideally.

Cornish Blue

A firm blue cheese with a delicious sweetness that's harder than Stilton, so travels well. Drink with: apricot juice or a full-bodied white wine (such as a punchy chardonnay).

Not got June’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

Recipe ideas from The Simple Things.

Recipes: Five ways with strawberries

Strawberry season is upon us, and we're looking forward to getting out into the fields to pick-our-own. Meanwhile, these five strawberry recipes are summer on a plate.

Not just for pudding, these scarlet nuggets of sunshine can brighten up any plate from brunch to party nibbles.

Strawberry and brown sugar toasted brioche sandwiches (makes 4)

Pre-heat oven to 180C/350F. Cover a roasting tray with foil and place 8 slices of brioche on the tray. Toast till golden brown on each side. Set aside to cool. Hull and quarter 400g strawberries into a bowl, add a heaped tsp of vanilla bean paste and 100g soft brown cane sugar and mix well. Sandwich the strawberry mixture between two slices of thinly buttered brioche.

Strawberry, parma ham and parmesan crostini (makes 8)

Hull and quarter 200g strawberries and set aside. Take 8 slices of sourdough and 8 slices of parma ham. Toast the bread and arrange the ham on top. Next come the strawberries, then sprinkle with parmesan shavings. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, before topping with basil leaves and freshly cracked black pepper. Serve straight away.

Strawberry, pomegranate, fennel and radish salad (serves 4)

Hull and dice 250g strawberries. Slice two heads of fennel very thinly with a mandoline or sharp knife. Finely slice 100g spring onions and 250g radishes. Mix cut fruit and veg and 100g pomegranate seeds with a handful of roughly chopped mint. Combine 50ml olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and 1tbsp pomegranate molasses and season. Dress the salad and top with crumbled feta.

Macerated berries with honey and mint (serves 4)

Hull and halve 500g strawberries lengthways into a large bowl and set aside. In a jug, pour 250ml cloudy apple juice and 75ml runny honey and mix well. Tear a handful of fresh mint leaves into pieces and add them to the marinade. Pour over the strawberries and coat the fruit gently, so you don't bruise it. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave somewhere cool (not the fridge) for an hour. Serve in individual bowls.

Strawberry, goat's cheese and black pepper tart (serves 4)

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Roll out a pack of shortcrust pastry then cut circles big enough to fit 4 mini tartlet tins. Blind bake for 20-30 minutes. Hull and halve 400g strawberries and mix in a bowl with 1tsp cracked black pepper. Chop a spring of rosemary needles and mix with the fruit. Spoon the filling into the pastry and top with a slice of soft goat's cheese. Pop back in the oven for 10 minutes.

Not got June’s The Simple Things yet? Buy or download your copy now.

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Recipe: Elderflower champagne

Read our feature on ‘posh squash’ on page 35 of June’s The Simple Things? Get picking elderflowers before the season’s out, and use them to make this simple elderflower ‘champagne’ from blogger, Emma Bradshaw. With elderflowers in full bloom, it seems a waste not to use them in the kitchen. Have a go at this recipe from blogger Emma Bradshaw, who says: 'I've tried lots of different ways to make elderflower champagne, but this is my favourite most tried and tested method.'

You will need:

About 30 elderflower heads, in full bloom (pick on a sunny day away from the roadside, making sure you don't strip a tree of all its flowers!) 2kg natural sugar 4 litres hot water + 2 litres cold Juice and zest of four lemons 1-2 tablespoons white wine vinegar A pinch of dried yeast (although you may not need this)

Method:

1. Put the hot water and sugar into a large container (a preserving pan or spotlessly clean bucket is good) and stir until the sugar dissolves, then top up with cold water to 6 litres. 2. Add the lemon juice and zest, the vinegar and the flower heads and stir gently. 3. Cover with a clean muslin and leave to ferment in a cool, airy place for a couple of days. Take a look at the brew at this point, and if it’s not becoming a little foamy and obviously beginning to ferment, add a pinch of yeast. 4. Leave the mixture to ferment, again covered with muslin, for a further four to five days. Strain the liquid through a sieve lined with muslin and decant into sterilised glass bottles. 5. Seal and leave to ferment in the bottles for a further eight days before serving, chilled.

Makes around 20 bottles.

Recipe and images by Emma Bradshaw. Visit Emma's blog for more wild food recipes and outdoor adventures.

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Food from afar: Pintxos recipe

Pintxos are elegant bites from the Basque region. Try a recipe for Sun-dried Tomato, Goats Cheese, Pistachio & Balsamic Pintxos.

Pintxos - pronounced 'pinch-oss' - may have much in common with their Spanish relatives, tapas: bite-sized snacks consumed in bars with amigos until long after stuffy, old northern Europe has gone to bed. However, they differ in crucial ways.

One, the bread factor. In pintxos, it's used as a mattress for a variety of fresh toppings to recline upon.

Secondly, there are the toothpicks from which they get their name - 'pinto' meaning thorn or spike - which lock bread and topping together, and enable the waiter to tot up the bill at the end.

Try your hand at an easy pintxos recipe for Sun-dried Tomato, Goats Cheese, Pistachio & Balsamic Pintxos from Anneli Faiers and her Delicieux blog.

Turn to page 52 of June’s The Simple Things for the full feature (buy or download now).

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